All quarter, I’ve been thinking about Homecoming like going to the dentist, it’s something I don’t really want to go to, but if I don’t go I will regret it later.

I honestly thought I would hate every minute of Homecoming because of the change in location and more people in attendence. With almost 1,500 people at Homecoming this year, the dance had to move to Gym A rather than Gym B for safety reasons. Originally, I thought this change would affect the overall feel of the dance. I was under the impression that a change to a larger venue would make the atmosphere feel empty.

Now I wish we would have made the decision of changing to Gym A earlier. The atrium and the gym itself are better facilities, so it makes the dance seem nicer overall. It also required fewer decorations to hang over an outdated-looking space since the facility was nicer.

The awe one feels when walking into the atrium to their first Homecoming dance doesn’t just happen. It takes hours upon hours of work for StuCo members.

Decorationing was easier this year because of the change. Usually, StuCo arrives to school at 7:00 a.m the day of the Homecoming to set up decorations. In years past, it would take hours to hang all of the decorations up. Last year StuCo members were finished hanging up decorations at around 11:30, according to Nathan Vorel, StuCo vice president. This year, everything was put on tarps in advance and then hung up the day of the dance. It made decorating quicker and less stressful. StuCo members this year arrive at 7:30 a.m to set up and were able to leave by 10:30.

I’ve been a member of StuCo for four years, and this year was definately the least stressful decoration morning I’ve ever had.

The best part about having Homecoming in Gym A was because of court. In years past, students would be at an awkward angle to see court come in because they were off to the side of court rather than straight on. This year, Court was right in front of all the students, making it easier to see everyone.

My biggest fear was there would be too much space on the dance floor. However, people still crowded together in the center of the dance floor so it didn’t make a difference that the dance area was larger.

Another advantage to having the change was the class walls were able to stay up longer. StuCo members work the entire summer on these walls and usually they are only up for the assembly then tore down. Now, the walls can stay up for the dance and be seen for longer so the rigorous hours of work done this summer can be fully appreciated.

I’m grateful that I went to Homecoming, even though I was dreading it the entire time. Like getting a cavity filled, the anticipation was the worst part, but afterwards you know how much you needed to go.